Understand

Santander has some 180,000 inhabitants and is on the ocean. It features a small historic center and a handful of beaches. Its most famous tourist attraction is the Magdalena Palace which was used as a summer getaway of Spanish royalty.

Get in

By plane

You can arrive in Santander via plane (mostly domestic and charter flights; international flights from London, Dublin, Rome, Milan, Frankfurt(?), Paris, and Amsterdam; public bus, or car.

Taxis from the Airport into Santander are about €20. The taxi stand is in front of the terminal building. Radiotaxi has tel 942333333.

The Alsa [17] city bus (tel 942211995) to Santander Bus Station (Estación de autobuses) departs daily at 6:30 and 6:50 AM and then every 30 minutes from 7:15 AM until 10:45 PM from directly outside the arrivals terminal (€2, March 2009). Duration of the journey: 15 minutes.

By ferry

You may also wish to take a ferry from Plymouth, England. The journey time is approximately 24 hours each way, and is an interesting journey, although you may wish to resist having a large meal too soon after departure from Plymouth if you are unused to sea travel as the Cantabrian Sea can be extremely rough.

Britanny Ferries [24] operates two sailings a week from the UK to Santander from mid-March to October, on Wednesdays from Portsmouth and on Sundays from Plymouth, average sailing time hours. operated by the modern MV Pont Aven [25]. From November until around December 20th and from Mid-February until March only the Plymouth - Santander service is operated with MS Bretagne [26], journey time 24 hrs. There is no service from around December 20th until Mid Februray.

from Portugal

Get around

Foot Santander is reasonably small. The distance from one end of town to the other are some 6km (4m) and can be walked in 2 hours along the coast road. Within the city center everything is within walking distance (15min walking).

Bus Public buses are available at reasonable prices. Each journey costs € 1.10 (more for journeys out of the city proper, or you can save 40% by buying a 10-journey 'Bonobus' at a 'Tabaco' shop). A 10 journey Bonobus ticket costs € 6 (December 2009). Specifically, buses can take you to the main beaches some 2-4km (2m) from the city center. Timetables and map for download: [27]

Bicycle The City offers free bicycle rental at a number of locations around Santander (Jardines de Pereda, El Sardinero, La Magdalena). Bikes are loaned for the day, so get in early to avoid missing out.

Bullfighting Museum (Museo Taurino), Calle de Jerónimo Sainz de la Maza (in the lower floor of the bullring, in the western part of the city, near the Plaza de México, with bullfighting memorabilia, posters, photos and paintings, and colourful suits of bullfighters from all over Spain), ☎942341204. Jun 15 to Sep 15: Tue to Fri 6 to 9 pm, Sat 11 am to 2 pm. admission free.

Plaza Porticada, (constructed as new city center after the fire of 1941).

Casa Pardo, Paseo de Perez Galdos (house of 1915, also called 'Palacio de los Botin' with spectacular views over the bay, one of the most splendid mansions of the city, at Sardinero, reached with bus no 10).

Casa Pombo, Plaza de Jose Antonio 3 (mansion of 1875, in the city center, reached with bus no 1).

Post Office Building (Edificio de Correos), Avenida de Alfonso XII (an impressive building, one of the landmarks of Santander, builtin 1915,in the city center, reached with bus no 1 and 8), ☎942223023.

Edificio de Los Arcos de Botin, Hernan Cortes 21 (neoclassic building on the north side of Piaza Pombo, near the harbour, good example of 19th cent. architecture, visitors are not allowed inside, in the city center, reached with bus no 1).

Edificio de Los Pinares (impressive private home of ship owner Francisco García, with an outstanding view on the beach as well as Renaissance and Baroque elements of architecture), Duque de Santo Mauro (near Primera Playa, between Calle Duque de Santo Mauro and Calle Joaquín Costa).

Edificio de Viviendas (one of the city's grandest mansions of the early 1900'S in the historic district along the Calle Castelar and Paseo de Pereda), Calle Castelar, 15 (in the city center, reached with bus no 1).

Streets and Squares

Paseo de Pereda y Calle Castelar (1550 m long street with nice views on the harbour and the cathedral and many buildings from the 18th to 20th cent., including Puerto Chico, Dique de Gamazo, Cuesta del Gas, and Banco Vitalicio), (in the city center, reached with bus no 1).

Plaza de José Antonio (Plaza Pombo) (charming plaza with colorful flowerbeds and musician bandstand), (Calle de Hernán Cortés and General Mola are on the north and south, and Pancho Cossío and Las Infantas on the east and west).

Do

The promenade along Santander Bay

Picnic on Magdalena Peninsula

Learn how to sail

Enjoy the beaches

5 city walks: go to the Santander Tourist Office in the city center (Old Market, near the Old Banco de Santander) and get a free city guide; the free city guide describes these 5 itineraries. [31] These 5 itineraries are enough to keep you busy for 1-2 days.

boat round trip: There is a regular boat service through the Santander Bay, boats run from Santander to Pedrena, Somo and back. For a 45-minutes round-trip you have to pay 3,90 € and the boats starts at least every hour.

Playa de Mataleñas, between Cabo Mayor and Cabo Menor, the 'luxury' beach of Santander,

Playa de Somocuevas, Liencres (Piélagos), with fine golde sands,

Playa de Valdearenas, Liencres (Piélagos), fine sand dunes,

Playa Primera de El Sardinero, Plaza de Italia, the most famous beach of Santander,

Playa Segunda de El Sardinero, Playa de Castaneda.

Somo Beach is a little bit outside of Santander. It can be reached from downtown Santander by boat. Boats leave every 10 minutes and the boat ride takes about 10 minutes. Somo Beach is about 3 km long and is less crowded than beaches in Santander.

Buy

Lupa (big supermarket chain), Avenida de Parayas, s/n, ☎900200328.

Mercado de la Esperanza (busy market built in 1897 and restored in 1977, oldest surviving market in Santander after the Mercado del Este, built in 1839, was recently demolished), El Mercado, s/ (Behind the Mercado de la Esperanza in Plaza de la Esperanza is an open-air market selling clothes, fruits and flowers. Mon to Fri 8 am to 2 pm and 5 to 7:30 pm, Sat 8 am - 2 pm), ☎942220529.

Hilario, General Dávila (meat shop located at the Hospital Santa Clotilde), ☎942219854. Mon to Fri 9 am to 2pm and 5 to 8 pm, Sat 9 am to 2pm.

Parks

Alameda de Oviedo, San Fernando, s/n (in the western part of the city center, running from Cuatro Caminos Roundabout in the west, to Plaza de Numancia in the east, specifically between Calle de San Fernando and Calle Vargas).

Jardines de Pereda (Santander's most famous park), Paseo de Pereda, s/n (park with a lot of trees, bushes and flowers, a pond, several sculptures, a music pavilion, a monument to the writer José María de Pereda (1833-1906), a fountain dedicated to the Cantabrian author, Concha Espina (1877-1953), the Fuente de los Meones and the city tourist office nearby).

Parque de Altamira (botanical garden in city center, covering a total area of 16000m2), Paseo del General Dávila, s/n (in the north of the city near the commercial center between Paseo del General Dávila and Calle Vía Cornelia).

Jardines de Piquío (occupying an area of 13000 m2, with fine views on the Ensenada del Sardinero, Cabo Menor to the north and Magdalena Peninsula to the south), Avenida de Castañeda, s/n ("on).

Parque del Doctor González Mesones (park with an area of 40000m2,with fountains, ornate stone benches with heraldic shields and a statue of the poet José Luis Hidalgo), Avenida del Stadium, s/n (in theeast of the city near El Sardinero and the football stadium).

Parque de La Magdalena (with 25000 m2 the biggest park in the city, surrounding the Palacio Real (Royal Palace). It was deserted until the end of the 19th century and houses a hermitage dedicated to Saint Magdalena and a defensive castle overlooking the bay. It has a zoo on the rocky cliffs on the northern end, with lions, seals, penguins and polar bears and a galleon nearby that belonged to the sailor and adventurer Vital Alsar.), Avenida de La Magdalena, s/n, ☎942272504. 8 am to 10 pm daily.

Parque de Cabo Mayor (covering an area of more than 100000m2, the park is extremely spectacular on windy days, when the waves crash onto the cliffs.), Avenida del Faro, s/n, (situated near El Sardinero beaches. The Faro de Cabo Mayor is the oldest lighthouse in Cantabria. It was built in 1839, is 30m high and its light can be seen from 29 miles away. The rock formation of the Puente del Diablo (Devil's Bridge) and the Panteón del Inglés (Englishman's Pantheon) is nearby.).

Festivals

Fiestas Virgen del Mar (Lady of the Sea festival): May 19

Los Baños de Ola: July 16 until 20

Fiestas de Santiago (St.James's Festival): July 25

Mercado medieval (medieval market): second half of August

Romería del Faro (pilgrimage to the lighthouse): August 23

Excursions

Castro-Urdiales: seaside village east of Santanderwith a nice Gothic church and lighthouse.

Laredo(Spain): another seaside village to the East, the old quarter is worth a visit.

Potes: this small village is the key to the Picos de Europa mountain range (which is a National Park), and the Liébana region. Good eating place, and the local orujo (a strong spirits drink) is highly recommended.

Reinosa: the main town on southern Cantabria, it's a good base to explore the Cantabrian mountain range (Cordillera Cantábrica), with the Alto Campoo sky resort, the Roman city of Julióbriga and several Medieval churches close by.

San Vicente de la Barquera - Sea-side fishing village, about 30 minutes by bus. See the fishing vessels unload what Madrid will be eating tomorrow. Fantastic tides, so stay for at least 6 hours. Nice Roman bridge.

Valles Pasiegos: for a taste of rural Cantabria, no better place than the Valley of the Pas river, especially Toranzo, Selaya, Villacarriedo, Vega de Pas, San Roque de Riomiera and San Pedro del Romeral. Try the typical sobaos and quesadas, two traditional desserts.

Eat

The best area to eat fish is the district close to fishing harbour (Barrio Pesquero), although locals usually regard this as a tourist trap.

Señores Patatas on Calle Santa Lucía offers student-priced meals of fries and hamburgers. Try the 'Five Sauces' (Cinco Salsas) plates with five types of fry cut and five types of sauce.

Taj Mahal on Calle Santa Lucía is the only Indian restaurant in town and serves a tasty alternative to the Spanish staples.

Sakura near Cuatro Caminos serves Japanese dishes.

Santander is known amongst Spaniards for its many Regma ice-creamery outlets. At times it can seem that they have an outlet on every corner. Their very generous serving sizes of 8 popular flavours of ice cream have been melting down the hands of locals for years, even throughout the winter months. Other chains such as Capri on Paseo de Pereda provide a greater range of choices.

Zacarias, Hernán Cortés 38 (See map http://www.rutasporcantabria.com/restaurantes/zacarias.php), ☎942212333, [11]. one of the best restaurants in Santander, owned by the best known chef de cuisine in Santander, Cantabrian and seafood dishes, 45 €.

Drink

Everybody starts their night at Plaza de Cañadío, in the centre of the old town. It is a hive for young Santanderinos and exchange students. It is surrounded on three sides by various bars and restaurants. This is where most drinking of 'calimocho' - the red wine/coca cola combo favoured by young Spaniards - takes place.

Later in the night (from about 2AM) the drinking action moves to bars and clubs in the area, including La Embajada, Retros, Cafe del Sol, La Rana Verde, Opium and many others. Three major dance clubs are located nearby - El Divino, Malaespina and Rocaverde.

Cultural events

Centro Cultural Caja Cantabria, Tantín, 25, ☎942204300. The buildings is also known as "Modesto Tapia". It was designed by the Catalan architect, Domenech i Muntaner, a contemporary of Gaudí, and was inaugurated by Alfonso XIII in 1907. It incorporates many Modernist architectural features and was completely re-modeled in 1994. The Social and Cultural Office of Cantabria Bank offers theater performances, rock, pop and jazz concerts, conferences, art exhibits and workshops in drama, painting and photography.

Palacio de Festivales de Cantabria, Gamazo, s/n, ☎942361606. Designed by Javier Sáenz de Oiza, opened in 1991, classical music concerts, ballet and dance performances, home to Cantabria's School of Dramatic Arts

NH Ciudad de Santander, Menéndez Pelayo, 13-15, +34.94.2319900 [37]. There is one other NH Hotel in Santander[38].

Learn

The Universidad Internacional Menéndez Pelayo[39] offers summer courses for university students, including Spanish language courses for foreigners, that take place both at the Magdalena Palace and at Residencia Las Llamas.

The Universidad de Cantabria[40] offers Spanish language courses of 4 to 10 weeks' duration throughout the year through the Centro de Idiomas (CIUC). CIUC also coordinates exchange students at the university.